


A History of Resistance

by Reigning_Books



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Romance, F/M, Historian for the Jedi Archives, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I'm Not Ashamed, I'm tired of all my babies dying, Kylo Ben is still alive, Probably no major deaths, Slow Burn, This is going to take so fucking long I have a 5 page outline for this shit, You're going to have to wait for it u masochists, major tros spoilers, this is foR ME
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-31
Updated: 2020-01-11
Packaged: 2021-02-22 03:54:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22042516
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Reigning_Books/pseuds/Reigning_Books
Summary: “Eliot?”He seemed to snap out of it and inched closer to you. He leaned in as if to hug you, but stopped cold, “While your worship of my talent is unusual and appreciated,” Eliot whispered, “I think we have a bigger issue on our hands. Your patient in bed five is Kylo Ren.”Shit.
Relationships: Ben Solo/Reader, Kylo Ren/Reader, Kylo Ren/You
Comments: 10
Kudos: 101





	1. Chapter 1

Another bedpan fell to the floor, this one thankfully clean.

You reached down to grab the questionable bucket that had slid under the infirmary counter. “Fuck this, man,” you sighed, “I can’t keep doing this for much longer.” 

“You know the war ended right? You should be shitting your pants with joy that you don’t have to clean any more of those,” shouted your best friend, Eliot, who was incidentally cleaning used bedpans. _It serves him right,_ you thought, _the only person shitting themselves just got moved to bed fourteen on his side, so ha._

“Just because we won this battle doesn’t mean that our job is over now. There are going to be plenty of pilots and soldiers hurt in the Exogal battle that are coming home, only for us to wipe their assess while the bacta patches do our work!” you complained, passing Eliot the now dirtied piss tray that would have to be sterilized again. “I just don’t know if I can do this anymore- I’m not even a fully trained medic!”

“You wanted to help the resistance and you’re a lousy shot so what else could you have done?” Eliot offered, “Besides, you get to see all of the action up close, and isn’t that what you wanted?”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right, but the nanosecond I am released from duty I am going back to the archives -where I will stay- until you remove my cold, dead body.”

He turned away, finished with the sterilization. “I’ll never understand how you want to sit around with those dusty records all day. Well, maybe I understand, they’re dirty and boring, just like you.” 

“Hey, at least I don’t like working in this sterile nightmare. You wake up every morning excited to be a literal asswipe for your patients,” You shot back, missing the banter that happened when there was a lull in incoming patients. “And another thing, you look like wookie shit.” 

Eliot scooted over, letting you in beside him to help with the med-droids. “Okay, be like that. I might be wookie shit, but at least I’m not dead right now in the cold vacuum of space.” 

You laughed deeply. “ I wish. Think about being dead, you don’t have to deal with all of this crap. All you do is stop existing. That’s the life-”

“Attention!” A clearly fresh soldier interrupted through the doorway, physically humming with news. “General Poe and the rest of the resistance are returning from Exogal. Alert the medics in this infirmary to prepare for incoming soldiers.” 

“Absolutely, sir. Yes, sir,” you answered in unison.

“Hey! That was pretty good!” you said, beaming at Eliot. Of course, you two share the same single brain cell, so it isn’t hard to coordinate responses.

“Why thank you very much, it takes decades of training to become an expert in a dumbass like you and anticipate one’s every move.”

“I think that we’d better get started, I hear the ships coming down in the landing field. Do you think we could watch for a second?” you asked tentatively. You know that you might get to go, but he would never leave after hearing of incoming soldiers. Eliot takes his medic duties a little too seriously, hoping to keep on with the field after the fighting is over. 

He moved back towards the sink to sterilize his hands. “You can go ahead, **I** am going to start shocks kits and the med-droids.”

“Cool thanks!” I shouted, already out the door and sprinting to the landing field. **_I_** _am not about to miss the landing after Exogal for booting up a med-droid._ _There better be survivors after that death-run. Exogal should be the last mission most of them ever have to make, maybe now we can all retire to little farms in the middle of nowhere. Fuck, I want a farm with a garden so bad-_

A hand on your shoulder cut your thought short, “So Eliot let you off duty to come watch the landing?” 

“Who the fu- Rose!” you crushed her in a hug. “I’m only here for a second before I need to go back to accept the incoming patients. How the hell did you get out of fighting in this one? “

“Let’s just say that my technical skills were needed here. The sith fleet was dated and we needed the schematics to take them out.” Her voice lowered. “I heard that each one of the sith ships had a stardestoyer.”

You felt your body shudder involuntarily. You couldn’t even imagine the hell that would have been unleashed if they had gotten off planet. 

“Hey, you okay?” Rose asked, waving a hand in front of your face. 

“Yeah, I’m okay,” You hadn’t even realized that you zoned out, you were too busy imagining this planet splinter beneath your feet. 

Rose grabbed your hand. “Hey, they took care of it, okay? Everyone landing now, and everyone from the ends of the universe came to help,” she looked towards the landing stations in the field, “I have to go help with the docking, but I love you and come find me later!”

“I love you too!” you shouted as she ran towards the action, “Come find me after dinner!”

Heart racing, you turned to face the landing field, hoping to catch sight of a few of your friends that had gone to fight. _Not like you have many in the first place. Hey,_ you corrected yourself, _it’s better to have a few close friends like Rose and Eliot than to be acquaintances with every star system. Stop being hard on yourself._

You watched the first ships touch down, noticing that thankfully, people were returning, but unfortunately for you, every single pilot was in bad shape and making fast towards the infirmary. You instantly decided to go back, but you caught sight of an old X-Wing -one you knew that Rey, was flying. You had never actually talked to her, but Finn and Poe had spent enough time in your ward to get to know you well enough. Well, enough to make you look for them when the mission crews landed. 

Something was different about this though, something was off and everyone watching knew it. The X-Wing hood popped open and two bodies fell out. _Oh shit._ As far as you could see, you were the only medic stupid enough to be away from the infirmary. _Shit I guess it’s me._ Your legs couldn’t take you fast enough and your training kicked in. 

“Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit,” You breathed as you knelt down to check their pulses. Too light. “I need two transporter droids now! Now dammit!” You could not let Rey and this man die.

“I swear on every one of your lives if I don’t have two transport droids right fucking now I will kill you!” you screamed and suddenly, as if the threat of death sparked intelligence, two droids with stretchers appeared at your side. _About fucking time._

“Lift them on, we’re going to the ICU,” you shouted as you entered the route into the transport droids.

Passengers in tow, you ran ahead of the droids to warn Eliot exactly what you were getting into. 

“Eliot! We have two incoming in bad shape. I need your help, this is serious, it’s Rey.” You shouted down the ward, hoping he would hear you. He came sprinting out of a supply closet, knowing if Rey needed help you were fucked.

“We’ll put them in beds four and five- I need two med-droids ready for vitals immediately,” he shouted, ushering in the transporters with Rey and the other man.

You hurried to get the droids in place. “Beds four and five are ready. Both droids ready to receive.” 

“Okay, here we go, easy sliding,” Eliot grunted, lifting Rey off the stretcher. “Transfer to bed complete.”

You moved to help the other man. _Shit he’s massive._ “I’m going to have to slide him Eliot, I can’t lift him. Okay on three. One,” you crossed the man’s arms, giving his hand a quick squeeze, “two, three. Transfer to bed complete.” Your training in high gear now, it was time to hook him up to the droids and stop the immediate bleeding. Your hands taking over, you looked up and realized that it really was Rey in the bed across from you, Eliot doing his best to work with the outdated Med-Droid the resistance supplied medics with.

“Eliot how is she?”

“She’s suffering minor head and minor torso injuries. The droids say cause of loss of consciousness is exhaustion, but I don’t know what could do this to her. How’s your guy?”

“He seems to be suffering from severe internal injuries and should honestly be dead right now, but who the hell knows.” Right now you needed to focus on stopping his bleeding from everywhere. Strip and stabilize. _I can’t stop the bleeding with all of this fucking black cloth_ . Taking the most industrial pair of scissors from your kit, you cut away his shirt and cloak. _Shit it’s worse than I thought._ A gaping wound was profusely bleeding on his lower left abdomen. _Come on. If you fucking die on my table I will kill you strange giant-man._ “Eliot!” you shout, “I need help he’s regaining consciousness and it’s going to be nasty in the state he’s in.” _Shit._

“Get your droid to put him under and hope to high powers that he isn’t allergic to anything,” Eliot shouts, still focused on getting Rey in stable condition.

 _You can do this, come on. You’ve had worse come in and go out alive. This is your first intense patient alone. You can’t do this._ **_No._ ** _You will do this._ His eyes flick open. _Shit. The droid wasn’t fast enough._ His eyes flutter shut again. _Thank the force. Go to sleep. Go to sleep please, and I will root around inside of you until I can fix your fucking problems sir._

“How are you over there,” Eliot asks, rushing over to your patient, “Rey has steady vitals. How can I help?”

“I need your help, I think he’s been stabbed at some point and has an incredible amount of bruising, like a possible fall. I can’t help him, I don’t have training for this. You do though, how do we fix him?”

“It’s going to be hell, but you got him through the worst of it,” Eliot reassured you, taking over the patient.

You worked in tandem, one gathering from your limited supplies while the other focused on closing the wound and repairing the damaged tissue. It was an hour before you made noticeable progress, not much longer and he would have been dead. Finally, the droid alerted you that he had vitals within the range of mostly normal for someone who was hurt within an inch of his life and then tumbled out of a ship.

“That, my dear friend, is how you don’t kill someone,” Eliot said, stepping back from the man on the table with hands raised like he won the lottery.

You braced yourself. “Eliot, I want to tell you something. I’ll never say this again because I know it’ll inflate your ego to the size of a stardestroyer, so listen up. I know I shit on you a lot for wanting to be a medic for the rest of your life, but you’re damn good at it. You’re calm under pressure and you have incredible skill with surgery even when you have no fucking tools. You also suck. Thank you.” You screwed your eyes shut, not sure what to expect out of your friend, neither one of you often handling emotions very often. 

He stood frozen by the patient’s bed. 

“Eliot?”

He snapped out of it and inched closer to you. He leaned in as if to hug you, but stopped cold, “While your worship of my talent is unusual and appreciated,” Eliot whispered, “I think we have a bigger issue on our hands. Your patient in bed five is Kylo Ren.”

_Shit._


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The horrors of war are back, and this time it's personal.

_Shit. Shit. ShitShitShit. Kylo Ren._

You froze in your tracks. “The Kylo Ren?” you whispered back, afraid that suddenly your patient would wake up and murder you where you stood. “ Like Supreme Leader of the First Order that we just destroyed, Kylo Ren?”

“Poe sent a transmission, he ID’d him after they both fell out of Rey’s ship. He saw you cart them off and made the decision to let us work before other choices were made,” Eliot said, the atmosphere in the room suddenly ice cold.

You backed to the nearest wall, slowly sliding down until you were sitting on the floor. _The most dangerous man in the universe is in my hospital ward._ “Eliot?” you asked. “He’s sedated now, yes?”

Eliot eased onto the floor beside you, clothes still spattered with Kylo Ren’s blood. “He should be, but I don’t know how the force works in regards to medicine.”

It had never occured to you that the man you brought in was a criminal. _The most dangerous criminal._ That was your medical training though, no questions other than ‘How can I help this person’ raced through your mind as you worked. You didn’t even bother to think about who was lying before you as you and Eliot operated on him. _He could wake up and kill us right here, right now._ **_Stop this. He’s only a man, and he has enough drugs in him to sedate a Tauntaun._ ** _That doesn’t make me feel any better._

“Hey, Eliot,?” you asked quietly, “What do we do now?” You looked down, your hands had started to tremble in your lap. Two feelings flooded your body, the first you knew was dread. Absolute brick-filled dread. You couldn’t identify the second feeling, but it was strong enough to make you stand up. You started towards the door, “I need some air.”

Rushing after you, “You can’t leave your patients unattended! No matter who they are...” Eliot semi-shouted.

You turned back to face him and saw a look of pleading of his face. _For fuck’s sake, okay._ The second feeling was unbridled rage, that was now certain. “You know I’m not a real medic right? I never took the oath, and I only had six weeks of training before being thrust into this with you!” you whisper-yelled back at him, afraid that if you were too loud you would wake the murderous elephant-in-the-room. “I can’t be in a room with that monster.”

“Look at me,” he clutched your shoulders, “ I know that you’re not committed to this like I am, but he is your patient, and I have a hundred wounded pilots pouring into this infirmary. I need you- I need you to keep your fucking head and make sure that these two,” he pointed to Rey and Ren, “the most important people on this planet, remain in stable condition. Please.” 

“I can do that,” you conceded. This was bigger than yourself. “I’m going to need a line to Poe so I can update him on their conditions.”

You saw relief sink through his body, “Thank you- thank the force. I’ll give you anything you need. Let me see your transmitter,” he said, pulling out his own and inputting Poe’s signal number into yours. 

From the corner of your eye you watched Ren as he slept, his breath slowly rising and falling with the beep of the monitor droid. _He is just a man, you can do this. He’s a man who has killed countless innocent people._ **_Cut it out. You have a job to do._ **

“Is there anything I can do that doesn’t have me in the same room as him?” you softly pleaded to Eliot, glancing back to the occupied bed.

“I need you here, now. I have to help with the new inpatients,” he said, moving towards the supply closet where you kept extra scrubs, his no longer sanitary after piecing Kylo Ren back together. “If anything happens, I’ll be down the hall and you have Poe on a direct line.”

_That doesn’t make it any better._

You took your seat on the other side of Rey’s bed, trying to be as physically far from Kylo Ren as you could manage while still in reading distance of both monitoring droids. You shot a quick message to Poe.

 _Hey Poe, I have Rey and Kylo Ren in my ward in the infirmary. Both are stable. Will update you as needed._

The slow beeping of the monitors sent you into a trance, unable to process your situation further that your professionalism would allow. There was no way in hell that you would come out of this okay. What happens when he wakes up?

_Ping._

_Ping._

You snapped to and saw a message from Poe: _On my way. Don’t take your eyes off them._

At least you wouldn’t be alone with the two power-bombs asleep in the beds beside you for long. You forced yourself to look up from the transmitter and towards Ren’s bed. You felt a shudder move down your spine for the second time today. _If I could stop being faced with the horrors of war today, that would be incredible._

To pass the time, you thought back to the idea of retirement from the medical field, not even your chosen profession. _I swear if I didn’t love Eliot so much I would have stayed a historian at the archives. That asshole made me care about the resistance._ You couldn’t help but feel a sense of gratitude towards your oldest friend, a small smile gracing your lips. _I never would have come here, never making a direct difference in the fight._

The door at the end of the hall slid open. “How is she?” a worried Poe shouted, hand on blaster, painfully aware of Rey’s counterpart in the next bed over. “I saw her ship leave Exogal, and I knew she was alive, but I didn’t even think about what she had done while we were in the air.”

You quickly stood, pride filling your chest as you addressed your new general and frequent patient, “General! She’s stable and sustained minor injuries. She’s suffering from extreme exhaustion, something must have put her through it down there.” 

Your general plopped onto on the stool next to her bed. “Shit, that’s wonderful. You’re one of the best damn medics we have, and I would know.”

“That is absolutely right,” you interjected, “and every single pilot has come back from mission with injuries of electrocution. You sit your ass down on bed three or I swear I will call Chewie to restrain you.” You motioned for a med-droid. “I swear every time you come in here there’s something wrong with your broke ass.”

He laughed, “I made it out of this one with all my fingers and toes, I think I’ll live.”

“You might be alive now,” you sighed, checking him for signs of abnormal heart and muscle contractions, “but I’ll kill you if you keep avoiding your checkups with me.” A comfortable silence fell on you both as the familiar rhythm of checking Poe for damage took over. He spent more time in your ward than you did.

“Hey Poe?” you asked, “Are we still calling ourselves The Resistance?”

“Damn, I haven’t thought about that,” he muttered, still not fully registering that the first order had fallen, “I guess that needs to be first on the list.”

“Yeah, I mean, we’re not resisting a regime anymore. I guess that makes us a government now,” you thought aloud. “Anyways, you seem well enough for being electrocuted.”

He shot off the bed and onto his feet. “I told you! I’m fine, I don’t need any of this coddling you call medicine.”

“Hey now, two minutes ago you were praising my skills as a medic! Now I’m useless? You sir are going to have to pay by seeing me in here more often until I can prove my abilities to you,” you retorted. “And another thing! Who the hell brought you back from the dead after your little trip to Jakku?”

“Ah, that's right, that was you. I guess you’re good...but your bedside manners suck ass,” Poe said, making towards the door. 

You stopped him, remembering why you were relieved he came. “Hey Poe? Can you explain my other patient? Eliot said you ID’d him coming out of the X-wing, but if you could take a second look I’d be grateful.” Part of you hoped that Poe had misidentified the dark-haired man who fell out of Rey’s ship, but you knew by looking at him that he was unforgettable. _I don’t know if I can ever forget being in a room with this monster._

“Oh that’s him alright,” Poe whispered. He tensed the moment you brought Ren to mind, visibly clenching his fists in restraint. “It’s taking every fiber of my being not to kill him right here. He deserves the pain he’s in.” 

You were sure about that. Even if it was breaking your ethics as a medic, the stories you’d heard had him murdering entire planets of innocent people just to prove that he could.

Poe leaned in, “Keep him in sight. The moment he starts to wake up, call me and I’ll take care of him. We need him and Rey alive so they can tell us what the hell happened on Exogal,” he whispered. 

Okay, your one goal was to keep both patients alive. _That’s all they are, just patients. They most certainly are not just patients, they’re the most powerful people in the universe- in your care. Shit._

“I can do that,” you said stiffly. “I’ll let you know when the first one wakes up.”

Poe smiled weakly, knowing what he asked was putting you and the infirmary in danger if they woke up out of control. “You’re a lifesaver, literally.” With that he walked out, his shoulders heavier than you had ever seen them. 

_Okay then, I guess it’s just me and my new friends, two people who can rip me apart without lifting a finger._ You settled into your seat, now moved between the two beds. You were intent on keeping your promises to Poe and Eliot, no matter how you felt about your patients. So, you sat, keeping watch. 

Your eyes traveled to Rey, you’d been part of the resistance when she arrived as an unknown blessing from Jakku. She turned the fight for the resistance, and for that you were forever grateful. _She’s sleeping so peacefully for someone who has gone through so much. I don’t want to imagine what must have been on Exogal. She’s sleeping so well because she’s sedated to the stars. Damn, I wish I was sedated for this shit._ You were nervous, still unable to calm down in your situation. _I know what will help,_ you thought, bringing out your holopad. _I can absolutely monitor the patients and finish journaling this shit. Someone has to keep tabs on what's happening. Might as well be me and my very important personal commentary._

You started to take down the misson’s events. Of course, you had been keeping track of the resistance so far. It was dangerous to have actual records of resistance workings existing in a war, so you kept them coded, offline, and secret. Not even Eliot knew. He would understand if you told him, this is your calling, to keep the records. You started with all that you could remember of the mission: _It began with that Sith emperor. What the fuck is his name?_

“Palpatine.”

Every hair on your body stood straight up. The voice came from beside you, a low whisper. “His name was Palpatine.”

 _Shit._ You turned to face the voice, only one person it could have come from. _Kylo Ren. Shit._ He hadn’t opened his eyes, his mouth barely parted. Again, your medical training rose to the surface. _You shouldn’t be awake yet._ You quickly rose from your seat, the monitor droid still beeping steadily. He was doing well, aside from the mortal wounds. _You shouldn’t be awake._

“I am awake,” he breathed. 

_Shit._

“Um,” you stuttered, shaken to the core. “How is your pain?”

“I can’t feel it,” he said. That was surprising. The sedation of the medicine still holding fast even as he woke. _That is some force shit._

“That’s good,” you said shakely. You brought out your transmitter, remembering your promise to send Poe word. “I am going to up your dosage so you can go back to sleep.”

Eyes still shut to the world, “Thank you,” he sighed. 

You had the droid administer more anesthesia, a small smile stretched across his lips. He wouldn’t wake up again for a while.

 _Holy fuck. That was Kylo Ren._ A wave of surprise rode through you, you didn’t feel the power and intimidation that was said to have accompanied him. That didn’t make you any less cautious. _He’s still the most dangerous man in the universe._ You finally sent Poe a transmission saying that Ren had woken up, but that you promptly put him back under. All in all, you were still to remain with them both until definitive progress was made of their wounds. You settled into your seat again, writing out the events of the mission. 


	3. Chapter 3

You woke to the familiar beeping of the monitors. _For fuck’s sake I can’t believe I fell asleep._ You stretched, stiff from your brief, or at least you hoped brief, nap. You checked your holopad for the time.

“It’s 3:14 in the morning,” Eliot spoke from behind you. 

You groaned into your hands, “You fucker, why the hell did you let me sleep? Both of these assholes could have died, you should have woken me up.” 

“I let you sleep because you looked exhausted,” Eliot said. He sat beside you. “Besides, they wouldn’t have died because we did our jobs well. Poe told me about your stint with Ren, what happened?”

You took a deep breath. “I thought a question in my head, and he answered it out loud. I upped his dosage from the droid and he thanked me, said he couldn’t feel the pain, but he was awake all the same. He finally went back to sleep, and I assume he’s been that way since.” 

He looked you in the eyes. “I’m so sorry that I wasn’t here with you. I know it must have been scary for you to be alone like that.” He ran his hands through his hair, the fluorescent of the infirmary making it look almost blue rather than black.

“Thank you for your apology, but I think I handled it pretty well. I am a strong, independent woman, and I don’t need a chaperone. What could you have done if he had woken up angry? Shouted out hand washing procedure and the Latin names of body parts?” you laughed at the thought of the confrontation. “That would be hilarious, and you would get your ass handed to you, which I might pay to see.”

“Hey,” he interjected, “I did get my ass handed to me. We had three hundred and forty two people come in yesterday after the mission, and almost every single one of them was electrocuted on board their ships. I don’t know what happened, but Finn told me that lightning had come from the floor of the planet and attacked every resistance ship in the air. That is some fucked up shit. I can’t think about what could have caused that.”

You paused for a moment, unsure of how to respond. You needed answers. _“_ I don’t think I can stay here. I’m not a medic- this isn’t what I’m supposed to do.” You braced yourself, this job meant so much to Eliot, but you couldn’t do it anymore.

“I knew this was coming,” Eliot smiled, “Now that this is all over, you can go back to your dirty archives and not talk to people all day.”

“That sounds incredible and you know it,” you laughed. Leaving your job was going to be hard, you had been here, among the people and the real resistance, fighting for your cause, for years. You had to find another purpose. 

Eliot looked at you, “I’m not entirely sure what you’ll do, but anything is better than scrubbing bedpans.”

“I think I have an idea,” you said, “ I haven’t said anything to you because I knew that if word got out, it could hurt the resistance.” His eyes widened as you spoke. “I’ve been keeping records of the war. History is what I live for, keeping the records, it’s what I love. I’m going to ask Poe if I can have a position in the new government, possibly work to create a new set of archives. There’s a legend of Jedi archives, before the last war. ” You felt vulnerable, you'd always joked around about the archives, but it had never been serious. 

“I think that’s incredible,” Eliot beamed. You let go of the breath you’d been holding. _I'm not nuts that’s great._ “I think you better make today your last day. I can work on finding a replacement, but it’ll take me a little bit.”

You let out a shaky laugh, letting your shoulders drop. “Thank you,” you said, putting your face in your hands. “I don’t know what’s going to happen, or how it’s going to happen, but don’t for one second that this means you’re getting rid of me you ass.”

Eliot leaned over, pulling you into a hug. “I love your dusty ass. You better come and see me. Actually,” he said, interrupting his thought, “You are required to bring me lunch everyday as payback for leaving.”

“Deal.” 

“I do need you to stay on until I can find your replacement though,” he said. Eliot was going to have trouble finding someone with your training that was in tune to how he worked. “ It shouldn’t be more than a day or two if I put out a notice now.”

“Great,” you sighed waving your hand to your patients, “More time with my two new best friends here. They’re very talkative, much cooler than you.” 

“Oh I don’t doubt that. They’d have some interesting stories to tell. Too bad for you though, all you get to do is switch out bandages and run the droids. It’s not like you’d ever get to talk to Rey about her experience as a Jedi- Oh! Wait,” he said with a shit eating grin on his face, “That sounds exactly like what you can do. I’m a genius, thank me with lunch.” He stood to head back to the other patients, stopping in the doorway. “Do me a favor. Be careful with Ren. Finn mentioned some shit going on in the force, and with the death of General Organa, he said that Ren didn’t have the same dark energy. Like fuck I know what that means, but be careful. He’s murdered countless people. I won’t let you be one of them.” 

You watched as your best friend left, aware of the fact that you were alone save the two comatose individuals before you. Your thoughts raced at the possibility of interviewing Rey about her experiences with the force. _Fuck that’s cool._ _That might be how I reestablish the Jedi Archives._ You sat, thinking about the future, and for the first time in years, you felt at ease with your choice. Well. a _lmost at ease._ You were still uncomfortable around Ren, the murderer now at the forefront of your mind. How could he sleep so peacefully? _A shit ton of drugs. I need to be careful around him. He might be drugged, but that means fuck all in his world._

You remembered Eliot mentioning changing bandages. _I can do that, that’s routine enough._ You started with Rey, hers would take the least amount of time. With the IV pumping through her all night she should be almost ready to wake. _Her head looks good,_ you thought, peeling away the old dressings. There would be no scarring thanks to Eliot’s handiwork the day before. You shot Eliot a message, _What’s your opinion on waking Rey- healing well and fluids taking course._ Carefully wrapping her new bandages in place, you stepped back. _That is some neat ass work right there._ You could only hope for vaguely similar with Ren. _That man is broken._

 _Ping._ You fumbled for your transmitter. _Sounds good. Tell Poe._ You could always count on Eliot to be eloquent. You messaged Poe with your plan. 

Taking a deep breath, you had the droid stop the heavy drug flow to Rey, replacing them with light painkillers to ease her transition to consciousness. It would be some time before the drugs left her system, giving her time to wake up on her own. _Okay, that was smooth, now for the next one._ You turned to Ren in bed five, his breathing steady, vitals stable and deeply asleep. _I fucking hope it’s deep._ You reached to start undoing his bandages, but you looked down to see your hands trembling. _Stop that. He’s a patient._ You took a second, closing your eyes and controlling your breathing. _You got this. You can do this._ Slowly, with steady hands, you undid his wrappings. _Shit, that’s still nasty. He's healing well for the severity of his cuts._ It was hard working for the resistance, you didn’t have the same supplies that the First Order had for its soldiers. _That’ll change and Eliot will shit himself when he gets his hands on the new tech._ You smiled at the thought. Eliot deserved it after working as a medic with little-to-nothing for five years. Bringing your attention back to your hands, you applied salve to Ren’s most severe wounds. At this point, you were able to let yourself go on autopilot while you worked, mind wandering to what you might ask Rey if you were cleared to start taking down accounts. You leaned over to grab new bandages from your cart when you heard a weak voice from behind you.

“How is he?”

You turned and found Rey laying still, her eyes just opening. “I’ll be with you in a moment, I have to finish changing these bandages,” you said. You were surprised that she woke so quickly, but at this point you had no fucking clue how the force worked with medicine and dismissed it. 

“How is Ben?” she asked, more forcefully this time.

You turned to face her fully, confused about “Ben,” but softening when you saw her eyes trained on Ren, worry spreading across her face. “He’s going to make a full recovery. It’ll be a considerable amount of time before he can wake up. You only got to be up this fast because your injuries are significantly better than his.” You smiled at her, grateful that she was awake and aware of her surroundings. You turned back to Ren to finish the new patches on his lower abdomen. “How is your pain?” you asked, hoping the painkillers were at the right dosage. 

“I’ve been better,” she said, wincing and holding a hand to her head. “Thanks for bringing us here. I don’t remember much after the landing, but I remember you putting us on the transport droids and shouting at everyone.” She smiled weakly at the memory. “Did you threaten to kill people?” 

You laughed, “I’m sure I did. When my local Jedi falls out of her ship I like to act quickly."

“Thank you again,” she sighed, leaning back into her pillows. “What’s wrong with Ben?”

At this point you just went with it, assuming she meant the man you were working on. “He’s suffered severe wounds to his abdomen and major bleeding and bruising about everywhere else. He’ll be okay, but he’s going to take a while to heal.” You finished with the last of Ren’s dressings and turned back to Rey, _“_ Would you like me to get Finn and Poe? I told them that you’d be awake soon.” Her eyes snapped wide open at the mention of her friends. She tried to sit up but she winced at the sudden movement. “Oh excuse me,” you said, helping her lay down, “You’re going to take it slow for a long while. I’ll let them know you’re awake.”

Not five minutes after you sent the transmission to Poe, the two assholes came running into your ward. Finn screamed “Rey!” and Poe shoved him out of the way, both clambering to hug their friend. 

“Hey!” you protested, “This is an infirmary. Sit your asses down and act like adults or I **will** give you something to shout about.” Despite your threats, it was so good to see the three back together again. You softly smiled at the reunion, but you knew better than those assholes did about your patient's condition. “If you’re going to be here-”

“Oh fuck off,” Finn mumbled, still wrapped in their three way hug. 

You whacked the back of his head, “I love you too, but she is recovering from major trauma- that wasn't caused by you this time! Do I need to check you over, Finn?” At that he scooted away, Poe following. 

_That’s what I thought._

“What the hell happened down there?” Finn pressed, hands wringing in his lap.

Rey paused for a second, eyes darting to Ren in the bed over. “Palpatine was alive down there. He wanted me to take his place as empress of the Sith.” Finn slowly sat back, stunned, Poe folding his face into his hands as they listened. “He told me that if I killed him I could stop the fleet you were fighting. I almost did it, but Ben- Kylo Ren- fought his way in and helped me, two Jedi instead of one. I killed Palpatine, but it took everything I had. I died.” The room fell silent, not a breath in the air. “Ben saved me. Palpatine threw him over a cliff, but he survived and brought me back with his life force.” Rey leaned back again on her pillows, exhausted by the thought of the fight. “Kylo Ren is dead. Ben Solo saved me after I killed Palpatine. I know you won’t like this, but he’s a different person. He chose the light of the force, not the dark.”

 _Holy shit._ The shock settled deep into you. You couldn’t move, could barely breathe. _He couldn’t have, no one can change that deeply._

“No- No no that can’t happen he’s **Kylo Ren** ,” Poe stuttered. Another hush fell over the room. 

“I’ll show you then,” Rey said, motioning for them to come closer, “Come here.” She held her hands against each of her friend’s temples. Suddenly, both of their faces fell slack as Rey concentrated on showing them what happened that night. Mere seconds passed and Rey let go. Slowly Finn and Poe opened their eyes, heavy with weight that wasn’t there before. 

Poe grabbed one of her hands in his. “Rey I’m so sorry,” he said. “I didn’t know Palpatine did that to you, as your grandfather.” Finn nodded in agreement, tears welling in his eyes. 

Finn looked to the sleeping Ben, an understanding spreading across his face. That wasn’t the same man that ran the First Order. That man had died. “Rey, do you trust him?” he asked, still unsure. 

She nodded slowly, “I do.”

Poe looked to Finn, and then back to Rey. “Then I guess we have to. I don’t like it- I don’t like him.” Poe stood, waves of anger rolling off him. “If he does anything to hurt you, or anyone, I won’t hesitate to give him a punishment fitting the Supreme Leader.” 

You didn’t know what to do. This wasn’t your fight. You weren’t involved with the mission, didn’t know Ben before this, but you needed to say something. 

“I’m sorry…” you trailed. Aware as every eye in the room trained on you, you continued. “He woke a while back, he talked to me. I’ve heard the accounts of his presence, powerful and painful. He answered a question I was thinking, but he didn’t hurt me. He was polite- he said 'thank you' when I cared for him.” You stopped a second, thinking about where to go with this. “I don’t think he’ll ever be able to leave what he did to the innocent people behind, and I hate him for it, but he didn’t mean harm to me. I don’t know if it helps, but I thought it was important to tell you.” _Holy shit, I just interrupted the most important conversation in the resistance._

Rey looked at you- looking deeper than any non-force user could have. “Thank you. You knowingly put yourself in real danger in caring for us, it means more than you know.”

Finn grabbed Rey’s other hand, forcing her to look back at him. “If you know, really know, that he’s changed, then I believe you. I trust you.” 

During this time Poe had sat down again, and was staring at his lap. “I can't ever bring myself to trust him, but if he brought you back then there must be some good in him.”

The conversation ended there. You watched as the three of them, the stormtrooper, the spice runner, and the scavenger, sat with one another in the quiet. _I should let them be in peace. The problem with that is, this is a hospital, and I'm the only medic in the room._ You decided on a chair off to the side, contentedness washing over you as you updated the journal on your holopad, enjoying the comfortable silence between friends.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We are working for our dreams today, ladies and gentlepeople.

Surprisingly, your shift would end without too much trouble. You only had fifteen more minutes left as a medic. _I’ve been here for years,_ you thought, remembering back to your start with the Resistance _._ You got roped into medicine by Eliot, of course. Five years ago he asked you to join the resistance with him as a medic. You were both kids, and you didn’t have an ounce of training other than your apprenticeship with the archivist on Coruscant. You’d said yes, and in that moment, your life changed drastically.

You looked around at the infirmary, a wave of nostalgia rushing over you. With only fifteen minutes, you figured you’d better make your last rounds. A few of the pilots that were electrocuted on Exogal were sent to your ward, so at least you had more patients than your new friends, all the more talkative now that Rey was gone. _He’s better quiet than awake._

As if the heavens were shitting on you, you heard stirring from bed five. _I swear if he’s woken through the drugs again, I’ll kill him._ This was your final shift, you didn’t need this shit again.

“Killing patients on purpose contradicts your oath as a doctor.”

Your stomach dropped. There were only two people on the planet that could read your thoughts, and you discharged the nice one earlier. Rage flooded your body, the murderer was lecturing you on killing people. “Unfortunately for you, I never took the oath,” you muttered, making your way to other patients. 

He’d heard you, even from halfway across the room. “The Resistance is really that lacking in resources? You’d imagine with the defeat of the First Order you’d have a real medical team on hand.”

That did it. You dropped your holopad on an empty bed and walked over to Ren. _Or is it Ben?_ He stiffened when you thought his name. _Surprised aren’t we,_ you thought, pushing him further. “I have worked for five years as a medic and I won’t be treated with disrespect by you, the infamous ‘Kylo Ren’,” you snapped, “who, at the moment, is in **my** ward, under **my** care. For the next ten minutes you’re **my** problem, so shut up. You shouldn’t even be awake.” The second you stopped speaking, you froze. You told off Kylo Ren, who could absolutely kill you right now if he wanted to. You looked to him, gauging his intent. He was calm, lying back with his eyes closed. 

He started to laugh, not coldly, but a soft chuckle. His eyes shot open when he realized the pain that came with it, his hands flying to the wound on his stomach. “Fuck,” he groaned.

You instantly forgot about your anger, instinctively reaching to help him settle. _I’ll have to redo those dressings before I go. Damn it, I was so close to leaving._ Blood blossomed from his bandages. “I’m going to have to redo your stomach. You’re still on an assload of painkillers, so this shouldn’t be too bad.” You pulled back the old wrappings, finding nothing horrific, just a couple of broken stitches. “You’ve pulled a couple of stitches when you laughed at me, so it serves you right. They’re in different areas so I won’t have to restitch them tonight,” you said, bringing out new gauze and bacta patches. Your hands went to work, but you realized that, as your patient was awake, you could secure the bandages more easily if they were wrapped around him. “Do you think you can lift up so I can wrap these all the way around? If it hurts too much we can stick with the topical ones for now,” you asked, a hint of worry in your voice- not that you’d ever worry about him.

“I think I can,” he said softly, “ Thank you.” He struggled to lift up, pain on his face.

You made quick work, leaning in to pass the gauze around him. “This will help keep a firm pressure on the patches,” you explained as you worked. “Hopefully you’ll heal faster now, but you could honestly fix yourself with the force for all I know. I swear if we get replaced by your damn magic powers I’ll shoot myself with a blaster.” 

He smiled at your musings. “I doubt that will happen. Rey and I are the only ones that heal...so far.” He lowered himself onto his forearms, making it a little more difficult to pass the gauze around him. 

“If you’re tired I can always remove these and use the topical?” you asked, unsure if he was being as ass on purpose, or if he was actually struggling. “How’s your pain?”

He sat up again, wincing as he rose. “I’m fine. I’m tired, but you’re right, you do have me on an ‘assload’ of painkillers.

“I’m almost finished, hold on,” you said, wrapping the last section of the patch. “I have no idea how the hell you’re awake right now- you’re on enough drugs to kill a normal person.” You finished wrapping, motioning him to lay down again while you secured them in place.

“I guess that’s just my luck,” he groaned, thudding as he landed on the hospital bed beneath him. He made eye contact with you for a split second before he closed his eyes, sighing in relief. “Thank you, and...” he paused, “call me Ben, please.” 

Startled by his request, you lingered for a moment. “Okay…Ben,” you whispered in return. With that, you gathered the rest of your supplies from his table. Most of your patients, or, as you grabbed your holopad, seeing the end of your shift long gone, former patients, were mostly asleep, you wouldn’t bother them with rounds. _They can be for the little shit who has the night shift._ You smiled to yourself. _The second I walk out of here, I’m free._ You were free from the war, and the post you took to help with the effort. 

You relished every bit of your routine as you prepared to go home. A thrill ran up your spine, _I’ll never have to scrub in again. I can get as filthy as I want in the ruins of old planets and Jedi temples._ Of course you were sad to be leaving, but it couldn’t compare to the excitement you felt as you imagined what a new life, one away from people and their bodily fluids, could be. Hands scrubbed and uniform in the workroom bins, you burst out of the infirmary doors. The night seemed alive with possibility, and the soft glow of the hospital lights in the jungle guided you home. 

You’d arrived to the Resistance at the right time. At the time, it was coming to be the permanent base, and a settlement was cropping up around the rebel camps. When you’d arrived as a former citizen of the cushy Coruscant, you were afraid you’d have to sleep in the jungle. Thankfully, with the influx of recruits, a network of small houses was built into the trees to hold everyone. Now, with five years experience under your belt, you had a house to yourself. It couldn’t compare to your parents’ home on Coruscant, but it was yours. 

You climbed the ladder to the main platform, a large octagon with rope bridges leading out to the clusters of homes. You let your feet guide you, your mind racing at the thought of talking to Poe. _I can’t believe I’m this lucky. Okay, how am I going to ask him? “Excuse me Mr. General…”_ You grinned, the thought of your friend as the leader of free government was ridiculous- he’d come in once with a grazed arm because he was trying to itch himself with a blaster. _“Mr. General, sir,”_ you continued, _“ Now that the war is over, I am leaving my stable job to pursue a career as the Resistance’s archivist.” That sounds good._ You arrived at your door, fumbling for your key card. You were absolutely giddy. 

You burst through the door, “Honey, I’m home! Forget medicine, I’m going to get down and dirty with some dusty ass books!” you shouted at your empty house. You twirled through your living room, which was also your kitchen, and dining room. Your house was small, but clean and open- the only clutter came from shelves packed with every manuscript you could get your hands on. You ripped open your bedroom door and flung yourself onto your bed. _Shit I’m tired._ You tried to stay awake, thinking about tomorrow, but slowly your eyes betrayed you and you drifted into a dreamless sleep. 

This time, rather than to the beeping of droids, you woke to your alarm. _It’s here._ With the thought, your eyes shot open, strained by the morning light pouring into your room. _Oh fuck I’m so nervous._ Now, with all your brain cells functioning, you worried whether you were making a sane decision. _What if he says no? What if I left the only thing I know how to do at this point? What if he says no and I can’t go back as a medic?_ Your mind ran rampant for a moment before you stopped yourself, _If I knew I couldn’t do it, I would have stayed at the infirmary. Eliot would have told me I was an idiot if it was really too much._ You sat up, forcing yourself out of bed to be productive. 

_Shit,_ you thought, _I have to actually talk to Poe if I want to ask him about the job._ You grabbed your transmitter, asking if he had a minute to meet with you today. A _ping_ sounded from your hand almost immediately: **If you come in the next ten minutes, I’m eating breakfast in the canteen.**

_Shit!_ You reached for a brush, attempting to smooth your bird’s nest hair. _I need to look professional if I’m asking for a job that doesn’t exist yet._ You worked yourself into a panic. _I don’t have time for this, I have to keep my shit together. I know Poe, he’ll help me work something out._ You deemed yourself acceptable and grabbed a hunk of bread off the counter to eat on the way down. You practically bust down your front door in your hurry. There was no stopping you now, anyone who got in your way would go down, even if you had just won the war. Sliding down the ladder, you hit the ground and sprinted to the canteen.

Poe sat at a table by himself in the back, transmitter still in hand. He looked startled when he saw you running at him. “Is everything okay? Did someone die?” he asked, shooting out of his seat. 

You stopped in front of him, bending down to catch your breath. “Here,” you gasped, handing him your bread, “Hold this.” 

“What the fuck is this? Did you come down here to give me bread? I mean I’ll eat it, but I’m already eating breakfast,” he said, taking a large bite..

You actually had to sit down before you could talk. “No you ass, I didn’t come down here to give you my breakfast. You can have it though…” you trailed off, watching as he shoved the entire thing in his mouth. “Anyways, I came down to ask you a question.” 

“Oh, are you okay?” he asked, his eyebrows raising in surprise. A grin spread across his face. “I know that we’ve been spending a lot of some time together in the infirmary, and I know my new title as General Dameron makes me so much more attractive, but I don’t think I’m ready for a relationship. However, if you still want to-”

You interrupted him with a swift kick to the shin. “First you eat my bread, then you ask if I want to have sex with you. What’s next? You take my house? You’re one piece of work,” you laughed.

He clutched his leg, “Hey... that hurts, and I was just trying to let you down easy. It’s not my fault I’m so pretty and talented.” He sat down beside you, rubbing his shin like you’d actually hurt him. “What’s up? What’d you want to ask me?”

You took a deep breath, this is what you came here for. You closed your eyes, _I can do this,_ you thought to yourself. “I left my job as a medic,” you explained. You watched as his eyes widened, “Oh no- I’m okay. Everything is fine, it’s just not what I’m meant to do. Like Eliot, he’s meant for medicine. I- I had to go, and seeing as we beat the First Order, I figured why not now?” you continued.

Poe turned to face you, “What do you want to do?” he asked. 

_Here we go._ “I want to establish archives for the Resistance. There’s a legend that Jedi Archives existed before the first war, and I think we need them now that we have real Jedi again,” you said, almost shaking in your seat. “I worked as an apprentice in the Coruscant archives before coming here. I know how to keep the records, and it’s all I’ve ever dreamed of doing. I need your approval as the head of the Resistance, and since it’s never existed as a job before, I’ve been afraid to ask.” You looked to Poe, only to find him turned away from you, staring at the metal plating of the canteen floor. 

“Poe?” you asked. “Is it possible?”

He turned back, looking you in the eyes. “If I’m going to lose one of my best medics, I might as well give her a spot in our new government.”

“Holy shit,” you gasped. You lurched forward, wrapping him in a hug. “Thank you so much. This is so important to me- You won’t regret it-” you stuttered. You felt tears start to well in your eyes. This is all you’d wanted for so long.

Poe wrapped you tighter in your hug. “I have no fucking clue what you’ll be doing, but I trust you,” he laughed, finally pulling away and standing up. “Shit, I guess this is what it’s like to set up a new government. Come find me this afternoon around two-ish, I’ll grab Rey and you can talk about your Jedi library.” He grabbed your hands and pulled you to your feet. “Thanks for coming to me. I don’t feel like I’m supposed to be in Leia’s place,” he said, looking away. “I don’t know if I can keep it up. You asking, hell everyone moving forward- it really helps. So thank you.”

You gave him another quick hug, “I miss her too. I know she’s proud of you, Poe. You’re doing an amazing job, even if you don’t think so.”

He stepped back, an ease in his body you’d not seen in a while. “Remember, 2 p.m.”

“I won’t forget!” you shouted as he walked back to the command center. _I don’t think I’ll ever forget today._ You couldn’t believe he’d said yes. Eliot was right, you were made for this job- _I need to tell Eliot,_ you thought _,_ heading straight towards the infirmary, beaming with every step.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short chapter- sorry for the update time, class started back so we're all suffering :)

Nostalgia struck as the infirmary doors slid open, _It’s only been a day, but damn, this feels different._ A voice from behind caught you off guard- 

“Is that the new Resistance Archivist? Here? In my infirmary? I hope she’s not sick, but that must be why she’s here- it’s way too early to bring me lunch.”

You whipped around, finding Eliot leaning against the check-in desk. “I got the job!” you yelled, garnering a few disapproving looks from patients walking past. Suddenly aware of your surroundings, you whispered, “Poe is going to work with me on setting up the position! Eliot, he’s having me meet with Rey.” 

Eliot wrapped you in a hug, “I guess this means you’re official now. We’ll have to celebrate tonight- you deserve it.”

“That might be hard because we’re still on, oh I don’t know... an uninhabited jungle planet?” you laughed, “I’ll settle for s'mores if you can sneak the supplies from the canteen.”

“Deal. We can’t go clubbing, but we can have stale crackers and chocolate- that sounds like the same amount of fun to me.” Eliot said, breaking away from your hug and waving for you to follow him farther into the infirmary. “Walk and talk. Some of us don’t have made-up jobs and have to work for a living.” 

You followed behind him, stopping at the sinks in front of your old ward. Watching him scrub in brought another wave of nostalgia crashing over you. _I do not miss this._ “Hey,” you asked, “How’s my favorite patient? Is he still avoiding the lethal amounts of drugs pumping into his system?” You hadn’t had time to think about yesterday’s exchange in the excitement. 

Eliot finished washing and turned to you. “Ren’s awake. He didn’t take to the dosage, and I was starting to worry that it would get too dangerous for anymore-”

“Ben,” you corrected him, “He asked to be called Ben.”

“I don’t care what he's called, he’s still healing without going under to start the process. That’s some force shit, and I don’t like it.” Eliot said, finishing up and continuing down the hall where your subject of conversation was, sitting up in bed five. _Just like I left him._

“Ah-Since you’re back, would you mind getting me a glass of water?” Ben asked, looking up as you walked past his bed.

You stopped on your heels, turning to face him. “I don’t work as a medic anymore, so you’ll have to find someone else who does work here. That is-,” you said, venturing into dangerous territory, “-if you don’t use your force mind tricks to make me get it for you.” _I swear, not even a please or thank you. Were you raised in a barn-_

 _“_ Fine- Please, may I have some water?” he asked, the corners of his mouth turning up ever so slightly. 

_Shit. How the fuck do you know what I’m thinking_ ? _That’s got to be a major violation of force ethics or something._

“You’re very loud,” he responded- to your thoughts. “I don’t even have to try to hear you.”

“That still has to be a breach of Jedi ethics,” you said, genuinely worried that he could be inside your head whenever he wanted to. 

Ben’s face dropped and he clutched the bedding in his hands. “I don’t know. I don’t remember much about being a Jedi…”

“Hey, what’s going on over here?” Eliot asked, a hint of worry in his voice.

You let out a shaky breath, turning away from Ben who looked like he might cry at any moment. “Ben was asking if I could grab him water, but I had to explain that I’m not a medic anymore.” You changed the subject and saw relief fall through Ben’s body.

Eliot lit up at the chance to talk about his best friend and her new job. You doubt that there were patients left in the infirmary who **hadn’t** heard about your work, and you’re not even working yet. “Ben, you are looking at the newest historian of the Resistance as of…?”

“2 p.m.!” you answered, maybe a little too enthusiastically. 

“2 p.m.!” Eliot finished. “I don’t understand it, but I support it. My best friend is reviving the Jedi archives and I am here for that shit!” Eliot continued shouting congratulations as he rushed away, following the frantic beeping of a droid a few beds down.

Alone again, your gaze met Ben’s. His eyes searched yours, but you didn’t feel the presence in your head that you felt when he read your thoughts. “Are you really bringing back the archives?” he asked in a hushed voice. His eyes still on yours, silently urging you to answer. 

“Yeah,” you breathed, “I’ve known I would be an archivist since I was a kid.” You looked down at your feet, running a hand through your hair. “It’s almost like fate brought me to the Resistance. Meeting Rey and General Leia- learning about the force- it’s all brought me here to bring back the archives.” _Why the hell am I sharing so much- what is this? Am I thirteen again trying to spill tea with my friends?_ There really wasn’t an argument for why you were oversharing with your friend, but you started talking and you couldn’t stop. “I know it’s not world-changing- and I probably won’t save lives with this, but what else can I do to help the Resistance and make sure this never happens again-”

“When do you start?” Ben asked, interrupting your endless rambling.

You paused, wondering if these are government secrets you’re telling? _We don’t even have a government, I’m fine._ “Like I said, I meet with Rey at two this afternoon to discuss how I start gathering information on the past Jedi.” You were **really** listening to the voice in your head question exactly how much information you wanted to give the man before you. “I don’t see why that concerns you- I doubt you have a connection to the Jedi after what happened with the First Order.”

Ben’s hands fell slack against his sides and he slowly leaned back against his pillows. His slowly eyes lost the emotion you’d seen in them earlier. “You’re right. I don’t know much about the Jedi... anymore,” he said. “If you don’t mind,” he asked, “I’d like to get some rest.”

You gladly took that as your cue to leave. You found Eliot and thanked him for his enthusiasm, but you needed to head home and draw up plans for approaching Rey. Leaving the infirmary you had a bad feeling, not that you were in danger, but the guilt that you’d done something wrong. _Whatever it was, it’ll have to wait. I need to figure out how the hell I’m supposed to ask the last Jedi about telling me her life’s story._

You got home, drained after the day you’d had. The house looked lonelier than usual, the overfilled shelves closing in around you. _It’s not even close to over yet._ **_Hey,_ ** you reminded yourself, **_you are about to talk to Rey. Pull yourself together._ ** _Plus, once today is over you can begin real work. I need to talk to Poe about getting a place to start a collection._ Your mind kept wandering as you puttered around your kitchen-living room, making tea and half talking to yourself as you prepped for this afternoon’s meeting. Before long you’d sat down with your tea, booting up an old holopad that kept your records on it. You’d not updated in a day or so- not since the night after Rey and Ben fell out of their ship. 

_Alright, Emperor Palpatine, let’s try and figure out what you were up to._ You typed out the basic info you knew from the mission briefings, that Palpatine had returned and gave the First Order a massive fleet of stardestroyers. Beyond that though, you were still in the dark about Exogal and the Sith. _Well shit. There’s no info on the Sith available here. I guess I’m going to have to conduct oral interviews to get the information and possibly get plans from Poe for the mission details._ With all the information you had in your notes, you looked back through some of the earlier important missions that had to deal with Jedi. Most of what you had was on Rey- that she came alone from Jakku and trained under Leia. You opened a new file on your holopad and titled it **_Rey_** _._ _There has to be a start to the archives somewhere…_ Slowly you combined what little you knew about Rey with debriefs from earlier missions, and a timeline began to emerge. _This is going to take a while._ You looked at the time on your pad. _1:30 P.M. How the hell did I waste the entire morning?_

Limbs stiff after sitting for hours, you stood, stretching as you got up. _I might as well go ahead and find Rey- it’s better to be fifteen minutes early anyways._ You grabbed your satchel off the back of your chair, placing the pad with your notes inside. _Hey, maybe I can get new equipment from Poe if I say I need it for record-keeping. Nah, probably not. He’s still stingy Poe, even if he’s General Stingy Poe now._ You laced your boots up and reached for the door handle when your stomach growled. _Stingy Poe ate my damn breakfast this morning._ You smiled at the memory, still fresh from the morning. Grabbing the rest of the bread and double checking your supplies, you finally stepped outside. The _click_ of the lock made the moment more real, you were actually doing this.

 _Wait. I have no fucking clue where she is._ You rolled your eyes to the heavens, leaning against your door and whipping out your transmitter to shoot Poe a message.

 _Hey,_ you typed, _where the hell am I meeting the two of you? Or preferably just Rey. She wouldn’t eat my breakfast. :(_

_Ping._

_Command center. Haha. Eat my ass. :)_

A chuckle hit your throat as you read Poe’s message. He could be the general of a movement that won the war against the First Order, but he’d always be an ass. You looked around you at the jungle treetops, the canopy stretching far above you. _I swear I’m dreaming._ A soft smile graced your lips and you stood up straight, your shoulders back. _Watch out bitches, I’m_ **_the_ ** _archivist._ You knew that you sounded ridiculous in your head, but not much could have ruined your mood as you walked along the bridges, lunch in hand, finally at peace.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello thank you for your time. PSA I'm writing this for myself and you all can suck my dick.


End file.
